Twitter has been the subject of acquisition rumors, with Google and Salesforce as two other names of potential suitors, according to reports last week from CNBC.
The struggling social networking company has begun a process to evaluate a potential sale following inbound interest from some of the companies, Bloomberg says.
Disney is apparently working with an unspecified financial advisor to evaluate a potential bid for Twitter, though it does not appear from the report that the two companies have had any discussions yet.
Disney’s interest in Twitter shouldn’t come as a complete surprise. In an interview with Business Insider on Friday, Spark Capital partner Nabeel Hyatt said that Disney would be a better fit for Twitter than some of the other potential bidders that have expressed interest.
For Twitter, there’s an obvious connection. Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey is on the board of Disney so there’s a friendly relationship there. But the bigger picture is that Twitter is building a media company, not just another social network and especially not a sales tool, Hyatt argues. His firm, Spark Capital, was an early investor in the company, but Hyatt has no inside information on the company.
This fall, Twitter began its push in earnest by live-streaming NFL Thursday night football and releasing a TV apps so people can follow along if they have an Apple TV or Xbox. It will also livestream the presidential debate on Monday.
“Twitter is and has always been a media company, and everyone who thought of them as a messenger company got it wrong,” Hyatt told Business Insider in the interview. “And if anyone thinks they’re a sales tool and should therefore meld in perfectly to Salesforce, I don’t think has spent that much time with the core teams of either of those two companies.”
Disney isn’t just themes park business, but a conglomerate of media entities including ABC and ESPN. If Twitter starts to challenge both those properties earnestly, Disney could potentially scoop it up to help them become interconnected rather than competitors.
“If they’re not going to be an independent company, then you have to look at large media companies that are good stewards,” Hyatt said. “And I think Disney is the perfect place.”
This article was originally published on Business Insider. Copyright 2016.
